Park and ride buses would have added to traffic, says council

THE reason extra buses were not running from Stratford-upon-Avon’s Park and Ride during the Shakespeare Birthday Celebrations was because they would have added to the traffic jams.carouselca

This was the explanation given to the Herald this week by Warwickshire County Council in response to complaints that no special arrangements had been made at the Bishopton facility for people eager to get into the centre of the town.

A spokeswoman for the council, which owns the site, said: “We sympathise with the difficulties and frustrations experienced by people attending the special event in Stratford.

“Due to the volume of visitors to the town, various road closures, and the high number of vehicles on the roads, any additional bus capacity would have had little impact as they attempted to negotiate the road system.”

The Herald inquiry had been prompted by a complaint from reader Harry Budd.

He said: “Having arrived at 9.40am, a large number of people were waiting for buses. Half an hour later this had grown to hundreds, with park and ride staff telling people to walk into town because no extra buses were planned or expected.

“This event was advertised on TV and radio and planned over a long period of time, but somebody forgot about getting the public there. We are encouraged to use this park and ride service to help the town.

“I along with many others returned home. A lot of people had travelled a fair distance. People with walking and mobility issues left. Motorists arrived and left without trying to park. We were all annoyed and disappointed to miss the day. Those that waited must have missed the start of the events.”

John Johnson, the Commercial Director of Johnsons Coaches of Henley — the company that runs the bus service from the park and ride — said: “We were very aware that the park and ride site would be much busier than usual due to the Shakespeare anniversary events in the town.

“Consequently we did try to agree extra services with our colleagues at Warwickshire County Council, but with no success.

“On the day we did supply larger buses for the day and did operate extra journeys to try to alleviate the situation. Our drivers worked hard to keep customers happy but we do apologise for the delays and frustrations that were experienced.”

When the Herald asked why no agreement was reached with the county council, a Johnsons spokeswoman said: “We don’t know. We sent an e-mail proposal and we never heard back.”